Lario’s traditional sweets are rustic and nutrient.

You can taste several types of traditional Lario’s sweets. Flavoured with tempting aromas, they carry the memories of unique traditions and ancient savours. Here’s a small helping to begin with. These recipes are all part of the rural culinary tradition, sharing simple ingredients, high in nutrition and energy value. In the past, basic ingredients were always fresh (especially eggs!), wheat flours were milled from hard wheats, therefore they were more nutritious and digestible compared to the white flour (which was a prerogative of wealthy classes). Now let me share with you a few bits of four of the typical Lario’s original recipes, along with recent variations which nowadays are very well known, in and out of Lombardia. 

The “Miascia”

Bellagio is home of one of the most renowned Lario’s traditional sweets: the Miascia. It’s a delicious, soft pie, perfectly moist thanks to fresh fruits (usually pears and apples) combined with stale bread or Pan poss, lovely soaked in fresh milk, enriched with crunchy pine nuts and raisins. A real mouth-watering treat. The original recipe did not include sugar, added only in recent versions, because sugar was once a luxury reserved for the rich, unknown to the peasant tables. A nice helping of Miascia is very nutritious: once they used to have it as the main course of the most important meal. Today it is the healthy nibble to eat throughout the day.

The “Pan de mej”

Easy-peasy to bake among Lario’s traditional cakes. Known as Pan de mej, or millet bread, from the ancient local tradition, alive until XVII century, in baking and in rustic cakes preparation. Afterwards it was replaced by corn flour, mixed together with wheat flour. The mixture made of the classic ingredients such as eggs, sugar and butter, to which yeast is also added to make the dough lighter, is divided into loaves of about 10 cm in diameter, topped with elder flowers, and ready to bake. According to the tradition, try the yummiest cookies with boiled chestnuts, and a nice glass of sweet wine or passito.

The Resta

Historically prepared on the occasion of the Palm Sunday, the Resta is a kind of bread cake, enriched with the sweetness of candied orange and candid citron. The lightness and airiness of the mixture are the result of a long preparation which, in the original recipe, demands no less than three rising stages. Food and especially cakes, are often associated with ancient rural rituals connected to seasons, the moon and spring rebirth. The Resta abides by the tradition thanks to an olive branch stuck into it and the ear or fish bone (Resta in Italian) designed on the surface.

The “Rüsümada”

Named after Rüss d’oof (egg yolk). Eggs, sugar and red wine! These are the ingredients of one of most typical and special  Lario’s traditional sweets, a vivid memory particularly for the elderly. A real energy boosting snack, also notably used as an excellent remedy for seasonal discomfort. The yolk or rüss d’oof, is whisked with sugar, then theegg white beaten until stiff is gently added. The mixture is therefore sprinkled, slowly and steadily with three glasses of red wine. Rüsümada is now ready: it’s a light, frothy and utterly delicious cream.

If you look through the menu at La Veranda restaurant, you will notice that typical recipes from our shores prevail, from “risotto alla Lariana” with perch to “Missoltini del Lario alla piastra”, cornerstones of the authenticity and simplicity of our culinary history. We cannot emphasize enough the importance of using fresh ingredients, in fact our restaurant features dishes with “zero food miles” in the menu. And desserts are included in this healthy food list!

Armando and I, along with all the staff members of Hotel Posta in Moltrasio, are looking forward to make your stay on Lake Como a truly special and memorable experience.